Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) this week broke ground on its new $600 million terminal lobby expansion project, the biggest construction project in the airport’s history.
The 366,000-square-foot infrastructure upgrade includes adding 175,000 square feet of new space and renovating another 191,000 square feet as part of the airport’s Destination CLT, a $2.5 billion – $3.1 billion capital investment program aimed at meeting passenger growth through 2035.
“The airport has been preparing for years to begin construction of the terminal lobby expansion,” says Brent Cagle, CLT CEO and aviation director. “We began in 2013 with the removal of the original Hourly Decks to build the new roadway and make room for the expansion. Now that we’ve broken ground, we’re excited to start a project that will go above and beyond modernizing the terminal.”
The benefits for passengers will include ample seating, modern ticket counters, eight original artworks, numerous charging stations and five new concession spaces.
The terminal lobby expansion will also provide additional circulation space on the arrivals/baggage claim and departures/ticketing levels and consolidate CLT’s five security checkpoints into three larger, more efficient checkpoints with automated screening lanes to expedite passengers through security.
On the terminal exterior a 146,000-square-foot exterior canopy will be built cover the elevated roadway and terminal curb front and two pedestrian overhead walkways and two subterranean walkways will connect the parking Hourly Deck to the terminal, enabling ow CLT visitors to bypass upper and lower level airport roadway traffic.
The Terminal Lobby Expansion will take five and a half to six years to complete, officials say, adding CLT will strive to minimize passenger impact by closing some entrances/exits and adding construction walls in some areas.
